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Another case of manufactured partisan outrage?Oh. Auto-rotation, is what helicopter pilots do when they lose their engine(s). Since they can’t eject – that dern rotor is still whirring around up there – they try to convert whatever potential energy is left in their altitude into kinetic energy stored by the rotor blades, plunging down towards the ground and then heaving up on the collective at the last moment in order to cushion the blow. Whe I was a lad, an experienced prop pilot once told me with maybe a bit of exaggeration, that an autorotation is actually what the Navy teaches helicopter pilots to do in order to keep their hands and feet busy while they’re waiting to die. It doesn’t really do much for their survival prospects, he said, but neither can they do a great deal of harm and you know, it… keeps them preoccupied. I’ve resisted until now the tempation to comment upon the brewing scandal of a politician firing political appointees for what may or may not have been political reasons because the whole thing has become a kind of absurd kabuki theater – so much so, that I cannot but think I’m missing something fundamental: It’s different, we are told, when an incoming President Clinton fired all of the US attorneys in his first term because they were at-will employess who serve at the pleasure of the president and who were – in this case -appointed by a previous president from the other party. President Bush on the other hand fired eight of the country’s ninety-odd US attorneys because they were at-will employees who serve at the pleasure of the president but – and this is important – all of whom were members of his own party, whom he appointed. Which makes it so much worse. See? But of course, the “scandal” such as it is, boils down to what the internal process was that the adminstration chose to terminate one set of political appointees from their party and appoint another set for, what? The next 21 months? That’s a pretty big deal. Or something. The same folks who screamed “separation of powers” when Louisianna congressman William Jefferson’s office was tossed by the FBI after he’d been filmed taking a $100k bribe – and after he’d been found with $90k of that cold cash in his kitchen freezer – are now prepared to precipitate a full-on Constitutional crisis by demanding the right to root through the White House garbage looking for something incriminating on Karl Rove. Because after, all, it’s Karl Fricken’ Rove, people! The guy responsible for Florida in 2000, the whole country in 2004, and Global Warming. And all that stuff. The guy who brought you Bush!!1!! I think I’ve seen this film before: No underlying crime has been committed – unless the admittedly seedy but time-honored tradition of political patronage has been outlawed in political appointments – and yet we’re very keen to have a congressional investigation, with sworn testimony and all. Because, crime or no crime, Karl Fricken’ Rove might screw up and say something juicy, even incriminating. About something. Or even – still my beating heart – perjure himself even if he wasn’t guilty of anything! I know, I know: It sounds crazy, but hey: Could happen. So. This is what we have to look forward to: Congress as a source of endless of Third World-style political persecutions and partisan score settling. A wounded chief executive going to the mattresses with nothing left to lose. Twenty-one months of screaming past one another. Ah, well – look at the bright side: As long as the legislature is busy running investigations and not engaged in, you know – actually legislating, then they can’t do a great deal of harm. It keeps them preoccupied. Not like there’s anything else to do. Update: Now this, on the other hand, deserves investigating. Update 2: Patterico notes that Sen. Leahy didn’t always get all a-trembly at the notion of White House subpoenas, and after which he does it the lawyer. Which he’s qualified to do, so it’s cool. 12 comments to Another case of manufactured partisan outrage? |
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What isn’t getting mentioned, except in a few blogs, is the fact that nobody was “fired”! The 4-year appointment terms of the U.S. Attorneys in question, so they stayed in office until a successor was named – all completely lawful.
I think it’s actually Karl frickin’ Rove, not Carl frickin’ Rove…
What is noteworthy is with all this information coming out is that the administration is doing a really bad job of explaining itself over what they did.
From the reliably conservative Chicago Tribune–
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0703200293mar20,0,4663170.story?coll=chi-newsopinion-hed
In whatever context you want to frame what happened– a la, “Well, Clinton did it, too…” (and GWB, and Reagan), their explanations leave a lot to be desired.
Oh, I don’t disagree that they fumbled the ball horribly on this one, and that they have offered political adversaries a weapon with which to gall them. I just wish that the oversight attention was shifted to how the FBI came to apparently violate civil rights of US citizens in contravention to the law. That’s profoundly disturbing.
This? This is politics as bloodsport. It’s unseemly no matte who is doing it.
Agree with you there Lex. This is the story of an Administration that can’t even fire a few people without an uproar.
At the end of the day you have to ask “Whose fault is that?”
Term limits would sure solve a lot of problems. Until then it’s SOS.
Cap’n,
There is a fine line between what you call ‘Politics as bloodsport’ and true hypocrisy. Both sides of the aisle need a firm spanking from the electorate they supposedly represent. Why can’t we just elect a whole new Congress?
Unfortunately, those who are opposed to strict term limits argue that there already *are* term limits. Voters exercising their right.
“Politics as Bloodsport”
In time of peace, it means that politics as usual is an inherently nasty business where thin-skinned people venture at their own risk. The fixation on both sides is getting into power or staying there. Its the only game in town. Ambitious people tend to balance or cancel each other out, as the Founders wisely intended. Its an affordable conceit, life goes on smoothly, and the Republic somehow manages to muddle through.
In time of war, politics is no longer the only game in town. We now face a ruthless millenial enemy that can’t be bought or appeased, that doesn’t need the political class at all except as a tool. The people who make an art out of using other people are themselves being played by masters of deception. Who know exactly how to game our system.
The political class on both sides of the aisle are so convinced of their own self importance they will ignore all evidence that their squabbling is a direct threat to the safety of the Nation. The event or events that are powerful enough to change their minds [or even get them to simply STFU long enough to realize the damage they are doing] are going to be so massive that the survivors will think of this time as a fool’s paradise, back we could afford such vanity. How we will miss it.
Bloodsport. Their sport, our blood
CPT J
Always knew you were a smart fellow. And that there was a reason I liked you.
In politico-speak, the equivalent of banging my shoe on the desk while loudly repeating “HEAR HEAR…” or is that HERE HERE…”?
Leahy is old. With any luck we’ll get to see him rot. With even more luck, he’ll be hanged at the next revolution.
Lex,
Soon they’ll be coming to you and “supeeny you” to get all of dem fitreps & evals you wrote on all dem poor JOs a while ago..It’s only write ya know! You may have fired somebody in thar!
I see that it ain’t Waxman the Rodent on this Robespierre Type Committee but instead it features Leahy the Laconic (wake up Senator)! They’ll find out who/what/why! Politics may have been involved (no-shit Sherlock..why not?)
Meanwhile, our troops are in battle 24/7 in Iraq/Afghanistan. I’d like to give all 650 of ‘em up the road an ass-kicking!
b2